Events:
1002 – King Æthelred the Unready of England ordered the killing of all Danish people living in England at the time. The St. Brice’s Day Massacre as its called, was in retaliation to the yearly Danish raids for the last 5 years, and the threat that they would rise up against him and kill him. Its unknown exactly how many were killed.

1160 – Louis VII and Adele of Champagne were married. It was Louis’ 3rd marriage. The first, to Eleanor of Aquitaine ended in annulment after they had two daughters. His second marriage would only produce daughters, but Constance of Castile would perish in childbirth. With Adele, Louis would finally have the son he craved.

1553 – Lady Jane Grey is convicted of treason against Mary I of England. Jane had been propped up by the council of the Protestant Edward VI as an alternative to the Catholic Mary I. Jane was Queen for nine days before Mary was proclaimed Queen with the support of the people. Jane would stay in the Tower until her execution at age 16 the following year.

Birthdays:
1312 – Edward III of England was born to Edward II and Isabella of France. He became King at age 15 after his father was overthrown by his mother and her lover. Edward would become a strong ruler in is own right, but would also start the Hundred Years War.

1801 – Elisabeth Ludovika of Bavaria was born as daughter to King Maximillian I Joseph of Bavaria. She would go on to be Queen consort of Prussia when she married Frederick William IV of Prussia. She was in turn, sister in law to Wilhelm I and great aunt to Wilhelm II. Elisabeth had a twin sister named Amalie Auguste, who, (obviously born today also) Queen consort of Saxony to the future King John.

1848 – Albert I, Prince of Monaco was born in Paris. Albert would rule after the death of his father, and give Monaco its first Constitution in 1911. He did his best to try to calm tensions leading up to World War I, and though technically neutral, he provided the Allies with assistance.

Deaths:
1093 – Malcolm III of Scotland died today during the Battle of Alnwick alongside his son, Edward. He had been raiding the lands in northern England. Four of his sons would eventually accede to the throne of Scotland.

1143 – Fulk, King of Jerusalem died in Acre, in modern day Israel. He was the paternal grandfather of Henry II of England, and became King of Jerusalem when he married the only child of King Baldwin II. He died in a hunting accident and was succeeded by his son Geoffrey as Count of Anjou, and in Jerusalem, by his son Baldwin III.

1345 – Constance of Penafiel died shortly after giving birth to her 3rd child. She had been married as a child to Alfonso XI of Castile, but the marriage was annulled just two years in. Later she married Peter I of Portugal and gave birth to the future Ferdinand I.

1359 – Ivan II of Moscow died at age 33. He succeeded his brother in 1353, but was an incapable ruler.

1460 – Portuguese Prince Henry, son of John I died at age 66. Henry the Navigator as he was known, is credited with greatly expanding the Portuguese reach in the new worlds and explored the wide coasts of Africa. When he felt too old to sail himself, he spent his time planning and financing other explorers.

1726 – Sophia Dorothea of Celle died imprisoned in Ahlden at age 60. She had been locked up for 30 years after her marriage to the future George I of England was dissolved on grounds she had an affair and abandoned George. Her son would go on to be George II of the United Kingdom, but Sophia would never speak to him again after being locked away.

1929 – Princess Viktoria of Prussia died in Bonn, Germany. She was the daughter of Frederick III, Emperor of Germany and his wife Victoria, who was a daughter of UK’s Queen Victoria. Even though a German by blood and birth, and sister to Wilhelm II, she was sympathetic to her English cousins and even wrote to George V wishing they could be friendly again.

1989 – Franz Joseph II, Prince of Liechtenstein, passed away at age 83 in Switzerland. Under his rule, Liechtenstein became one of the richest countries in the world, and women were given the right to vote in 1984. His son, Hans-Adam II is the current ruler.